Erika Ikuta

 is a Japanese idol singer, actress and a member of the Japanese idol girl group Nogizaka46. In addition to her work with Nogizaka46, Ikuta has appeared in multiple television and stage productions, including a Japanese production of "Les Misérables".
Career.
In 2011, she auditioned for Nogizaka46 and was selected as one of the thirty-six first generation members. Her audition song was Aiko's "Star". She was chosen as one of the members performing on the group's debut single "Guruguru Curtain", released on February 22, 2012. In September 2012, she was selected for the leading role of Alice in Nogizaka46's stage musical "Sixteen Principal".
On April 20, 2014, she announced that she would take a break from Nogizaka46 to prepare for further schooling. She resumed her activities in August as the choreographic center for Nogizaka46's tenth single "Nandome no Aozora ka?" In 2015, Ikuta appeared in the Fuji TV drama "Zannen na Otto" as a high school girl who dreams of becoming a pianist. She published her first solo photobook, "Tenchō", on January 21, 2016. It sold 38,355 copies in its first week, and ranked first on the Oricon weekly photobook sales chart. It also ranked first on the Oricon book ranking photobook category in the first half of the year 2016.
In July 2016, it was announced that Ikuta had been chosen for the role of Cosette in a 30th anniversary production of "Les Miserables" in Japan, a role she reprised in 2019. In 2021, It was announced that Ikuta would play Éponine in "Les Miserables" in 2021.